How to sell your baby’s old clothes

One of the things that I definitely want to do this year is work towards decluttering our home. So during the Christmas holidays I decided to start going through our children’s old clothes and baby-related-paraphernalia that we no longer use (or that we hardly ever used for that matter!)

For me this is one of those big ‘house projects’ that lurk in the background of busy schedules and never get done, and although I’m quite good at ignoring them for months on end, when I start thinking about them, I want them done and ticked off.

Now, I’ve been told this is dangerous territory – friends tell me getting rid of your baby’s old clothes is a sure way to get pregnant, so if you don’t want any more babies, just don’t do it!

But hey, I’m not prepared to have these things lying around when my children are ready for uni!

So, bar a few things I’ve decided to keep, I went through it all and made a couple of bags for family and friends, one for charity and two of things to sort out and sell.

“Sell where, exactly?” I hear you say. Well, there are a few ways that can work for you.

1. On local Facebook pages

My local area has a buying / selling page on Facebook, and a lot of people post photos of toys, clothes or furniture items they want gone. The advantage of this is that due to the nature of the page people probably live in your area, so it’s often very easy for them to come and collect the items from your house, so you don’t have to spend any money in postage and packaging.

2. Shpock

The Shpock website (or app) allows you to sell any “second hand, used, antique, vintage or simply beautiful” items. It’s free for you to register, and all you have to do is take a photo of your item, give it a description, a category (from the ones provided), a price, and you’re done. People who are fairly local to you or in your area will be able to see your items first, so once again, it could be as easy as posting an ad and having someone turn out at your doorstep a few hours later to pick it up. This has actually happened to me! The only thing to bear in mind is that people can offer you a lower price to what you asked for, but it’s not until you accept it (or make a counter-offer) that the sale is binding, so take that into account when you price your items.

3. Ebay and Gumtree

Obvious popular choices are websites like Ebay and Gumtree. They aren’t that different to the above options, as you still need to take photos, describe, categorise and price your items, but there is a higher chance of someone who isn’t local buying your products. So you have to be prepared to quote postage and packaging charges, depending on weight and method of shipping, and of course include that cost in your price. If I’m honest, if I look at the amount of additional ‘work’ involved in packaging stuff and going back and forth to and from the post office, I’d just rather give my boys’ old things to charity! But that’s just me. If you are sitting on a good amount of money, and if you find this enjoyable, it’s probably worth it!

4. Second-hand sales

If you don’t have the patience to take photo and list all your items (that can be quite time-consuming), second-hand sales are becoming increasingly popular. A few years ago, the only option were the NCT second-hand sales, but today you can find lots of private other events in your area. If you just do a search for your area + second-hand sales, you should find what’s available to you. One that I’ve used in the past is the Mum2Mum market – you book a table for £25 for 2 hours and turn up with all your items. If you think you have more than £25 worth of clothes / toys / equipment, (and you probably have), it’s a great way to get it over and done with in the space of a few hours. Granted that you will return home with some unsold items, but you’ll have a lot less than you had to start with.

5. Car boot sales

Car boot sales might not be as popular as they used to be in the past, but they are still around! If I’m honest, I’ve not actually been to one as an adult – all I can remember is people selling antiques from their lofts! But it’s worth having a look online or on local magazines and newspapers to see if there are any running in your area. You may not attract the right crowd, but, if you have fairly bulky items to sell and are prepared to let people drive away with a bargain, they can be worth your time and money.

And you can always give them to charity

And of course, if all else fails or if you really can’t be bothered to do any of the above, you can always give them away for free to people who might need them. There are plenty of options there – you can give them to friends or relatives with younger children (if they are happy to have them), take them to your local religious centre, to any charity shop or one that specialises in baby and children’s items, to a clothes bank or even pack them all up in those bags that come through the door and get collected from your front drive by a van!

Hopefully you’ll find a few options that work for you here.

So are you going to start sorting out your baby’s old clothes and items any time soon? What are you going to do with them? Or have you done it already? Do you have any other tips to add to my list?

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6 Comments

This is something I need to do but can never find the time! I’ve given quite a bit away to friends with younger kids but struggling to find anyone to pass my baby boy’s clothes onto so will have to try selling. I’m just not organised enough to post on Facebook groups or websites but I’m thinking a second hand sale might give me a deadline to work to so I stop putting it off!

Good luck Bec! I know how difficult it is! I’ve got most of my stuff advertised and for sale now, but I just want it gone! I’m thinking to organise a second-hand sale soon, and what I don’t sell there, I’ll just give to charity! Hope you also tackle your project soon! 🙂

At the moment, I guess I can say I’m lucky and that’s because all my kids stuffs have been handed down to my 1yr old daughter. So we don’t have to worry just yet but I reckon 6 months down the line this might all change and then the FB sales or charity donations will take over. Thanks for sharing Sara